Some Promises Can Be Broken
by saraki22
Summary: Revenge is harder then most people know, it becomes even harder when the target becomes a friend.
1. Chapter 1

When Zabuza described Haku, he said that 'he' was stronger than him

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and only use it for entertainment purposes.

When Zabuza described Haku, he said that 'he' was stronger than him. This was a false proclamation on at least in some aspects. First Haku was not a 'he' Haku was in fact a 'she.' Second Zabuza's statement was false because Haku was weaker than him at least on a physical level. On all other matters Haku was superior to Zabuza in Ninja matters. She was better at infiltration, disguise, ninjutsu, genjutsu, and other matters. She was so skilled in fact that when she was in her normal shinobi clothing she could easily pass as a boy, even to experienced shinobi like Kakashi. How Haku was able to accomplish such a feet was through talent, a keen analytical mind, and hours upon hours of hard work. She had mastered both the subtle and not so subtle differences in how the two genders moved. Something that no Henge (Transformation) could ever do. Giving her a build in disguise that could fool anyone who had not known her true gender before.

Haku was standing at the shoreline waiting for her prey to approach. She was dressed in her feminine light pink yakata with close toed women's sandals and light make up on her face, so as to fool the approaching team. Only one had seen her as a girl and he had not seen her mask break when he knocked her over the edge of the bridge. This was why when Team 7 reached the end of the newly completed and christened 'Great Naruto Bridge' the only ones that recognized the young teen were Naruto and Sasuke, and Sasuke only vaguely (he remembered passing her on his way to get Naruto for breakfast one morning. "Hey you're…um…," Naruto began. "I don't think you ever gave me your name."

Haku gave a soft and extremely convincing false joyful smile to Naruto. After all he was the reason she was not able save Zabuza. Naruto had knocked her over the edge of the bridge and out of the fight. By the time she made it back to the bridge the fighting was over Gato was in custody and there were too many people for her to seek revenge. So she decided to put her extraordinary infiltration skills to use. Her plan was to befriend Team 7 and then when their guard was sufficiently down, she would kill them without mercy, 'Like I should have done from the beginning,' Haku thought. "You are correct Naruto. My name is Hana and I have a request I would like to ask you." Haku's fake name was one she used on several occasions. It was a common enough name around the Elemental lands so as to not through up and red flags and close enough to her own name that she would never fail to recognize it in conversation.

"Oh and what would that be?" Kakashi asked. He was on guard the moment he saw the girl for he knew she was a kunoichi. He knew this because of a few subtleties, her calloused hands, the tiny almost transparent scars along her arms, and lastly her stance. This girl's stance was guarded but tried to look off guard. The Gennin of Team 7 fell for it but Kakashi being a Jounin spotted this right away. 'This would mean she's about Chunin level.'

"I would like to accompany you to your village," Haku answered honestly. She truly did want to go to Konoha. Ninja like all humans are often more relaxed in a familiar setting. This would allow her to assassinate the members of Team 7 that much easier.

The three Gennin looked surprised and Kakashi became suspicious. "And why would you do that?"

Kakashi's question sounded casual and friendly but to an experienced infiltrator like Haku it was a demand for answers. It was time for the cover story that Haku had spent that last twenty-four hours going over in her head and perfecting so there would be no holes. "I am a **Shouyou-nin** (Wandering Ninja)," Haku answered. Kakashi was still suspicious but the Gennins were surprised, none more so then Naruto. "I have been looking for a village to settle in for almost a year now. I had heard that Konoha was a fair and just village. But I wanted to meet a shinobi from Konoha before I sought refuge there." She looked at Naruto with another soft yet false smile. "When I met Naruto last week while he was training I made my decision to settle in Konoha if they will have me."

Coming out of her surprise at the revelation this girl was a Ninja, Sakura asked the question that was on the Gennin's minds, "Kakashi-sensei, what's a **shouyou-nin**?"

Kakashi's uncovered eye stayed on Haku as he answered Sakura. "S**houyou** -nins are shinobi and kunoichi that do not have a home village like Nuke-nins (Missing-ninja). Unlike Nuke-nins however, they have no village of origin. Many are not trusted by regular shinobi because **shouyou** -nin survive by stealing jutsu from Hidden Villages."

"This coming from the 'Copy-ninja' Kakashi?" Haku asked with a slight mocking tone. All ninja's had at least a small amount of pride in their abilities and in themselves. If Haku was too submissive then the skill level she was portraying to Kakashi would set off his danger sense.

Kakashi gave a brief nod at the jab. He was well aware of his reputation as a jutsu thief so for him to accuse another was hypocritical. This was a question to a test that Haku answered correctly. "Some have been known to try and settle in the smaller villages but very seldom do they try for the larger Villages like Konoha," Kakashi continued like he was ignoring the jab. "So the question is why do you want to come to Konoha and what can you offer?"

"I wish to settle in Konoha because it's ideals are the closest to mine, 'a ninja is at their strongest when fighting for someone they hold precious'" Haku slightly miss-quoted. Naruto and Sakura nodded at that, they had heard that philosophy among other ninjas ever sense they became Gennin. Sasuke just looked a little uncomfortable as this was counter to his personal philosophy that others would hold him back. Kakashi looked to be considering what she said. "As for what I can bring…" Haku paused to truly think the skills she was willing to say. She had formed a list of what she would show to others but not what she would tell Team 7. "I am proficient at herbal medicines and taught myself medical training as well as having a natural wind affinity."

This information actually caught Kakashi's attention. All Hidden Villages valued medics and one with experience, even if self-taught, was highly sought after. The wind affinity also caught his attention. Konoha was on the look out for ninja with a wind affinity as it was extremely rare in Fire Country. Konoha only had two known people with wind affinities, Sarutobi Asuma and Shiranui Genma. 'She's not lying about the philosophy,' Kakashi thought, which was true as Haku truly did value that philosophy so she did not have to risk covering that up. 'But she is holding back what she can do. Then again all ninja do that.' Kakashi then spared a brief glance at Naruto who looked on with curiosity and no small amount of hope. 'Well maybe not all. Hmmm I should probably work on that with him.' Turning his gaze back to Haku, "Alright you can come with us. But it will be up to the Hokage if you are allowed to stay."

Haku gave a true smile. The first step to her revenge was complete, access to her target. With a deep bow at the waist she spoke, "Thank you for this opportunity."

"Alright, Hana-chan's coming back with us!" Naruto exclaimed. Naruto had already considered her to be his friend after their first meeting. He saw something in the girl's eyes when they were talking in the woods and now in the present that he saw in the mirror every day. An emptiness that consumed the soul, strangling it, killing it until there is nothing left but an empty shell. Naruto often saw that in Sasuke but in Naruto's opinion Sasuke was too much a stuck up to become truly close too. 'Hana' on the other hand had a gentleness that Naruto found comforting. "You don't have to worry about the Ji-san (Old Man) I know he'll let you stay!"

"Well shall we get going then," Kakashi asked. "We have a long way to go before dark." The younger ninja complied and began their trek to Konoha, Naruto in the lead with Haku telling her everything he loved about his home.

The five-day journey from Wave to Konoha allowed Team 7 to form opinions about 'Hana,' as was part of her plan. Sasuke dismissed her as a danger but became a potential source of information, be it jutsu or general knowledge as Haku had briefly described the places she had been and some of the training she went through. With Sakura, Haku focused on being another girl of the group. Haku was much more professional then Sakura was by leaps and bounds but knew what it was like to be a girl surrounded by boys. So Haku focused on being Sakura's 'girlfriend' and talked with her about various girl subjects, shinobi and civilian related. With Kakashi she was slightly guarded but answered his questions with from her self-crafted background story omitting some things and 'slipping' others. This lead Kakashi to truly believe that she was a **shouyou** -nin looking for a place to settle down. With Naruto, Haku was becoming the closest, as per her plan as she held him most responsible her failing in her duty to protect Zabuza. With Naruto she portrayed herself as a friend that he could tell her everything a kindred soul that each was just waiting for the other to find. This worked almost too well as Naruto started to open up to her like only two other people before, the Sandaime Hokage and Umino Iruka.

From her end Haku started to file information away and began to analyze each of the members of Team 7. In Kakashi she found him to obviously be the most dangerous. Behind his lazy, perverted and slightly dopey exterior there was the heart and mind of a genius shinobi with very few weaknesses. She knew that if she let up her false identity for even a moment around him he would not hesitate to kill her. In Sasuke she found a talented yet ego driven, overly arrogant loner that would be easy to kill once you exploit his primary weakness. That weakness was once he put you into a category he ignored all other facts that did not confirm his assessment. With Sakura she found a potentially intelligent kunoichi that lacked the drive to use the intelligence at it best. The fact that she was so obsessed with Sasuke that she pretty much ignored the rest of the world was just another flaw in her character. And finally there was Naruto. She found that under all his bluster, grandstanding and loud yells there was a lonely little boy who wanted nothing more than to prove his worth to the world. An image she knew all too well for she felt the same way on the cold unforgiving streets of Kiri, until Zabuza found her.

On the final leg of their journey to Konoha there was a subtle shift in Naruto's character. The only two that noticed were Haku and Kakashi. Up to this point until he had been excited and carefree. Inside Konoha's borders his guard went up and his attitude became all but forced. It was like he was anticipating an attack at any moment, like a caged animal that was forced to perform in front of a live audience.

The fact that the shift was all but seamless was what truly caught Haku's attention. With the right refinement Naruto could become a truly great infiltrator and spy. All he needed was to expand his acting a little and he could be as good as her. The question Haku asked herself was, 'Why is he doing it?'

The answer came soon enough. The guards at the main gate were the first indication of the kind of life Naruto lived. It started when they stopped Team 7 and their guest, "I.D." the first guard demanded as the others placed themselves for a proper attack them.

"Hatake Kakashi," Kakashi said taking his I.D. from his vest and presenting it the guard. "Along with my team Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto." The guard checked their I.D. and if they were under any kind of disguise. When he came upon Naruto he hesitated, like Naruto had some kind of infectious disease and almost did not touch him. After that he came upon Haku, "And she is?"

"Her name is Hana, she's a **shouyou** -nin that wishes to settle in Konoha," Kakashi answered.

"Understood," the guard replied.

Haku expected the guards to respond to her with trepidation once then learned who she was. What she was not expecting was they regarded Naruto with even an even greater amount. 'This is like the people of Kiri when they would hear about a Bloodline Limit,' Haku noted. 'It most likely has something to do with that terrible chakra he used back in Wave.'

The journey through the village was short as they took a direct path to the Hokage Tower. Along the way Haku noted the people around them. As they approached the people would put their guards up in fear and that fear would quickly turn to hate. All of which was focused onto Naruto, 'They are afraid of him,' Haku concluded. 'They would attack him if they had the chance. This is why he is so guarded.'

Soon enough they reached the Hokage Tower and entered. The Hokage was at the Mission desk handing out and receiving the day's missions. "Ah, Kakashi, it is good to see you are back safe and sound." He then looked over to Haku, "And you seem to have brought a rather pretty guest."

Haku despite all her training and self control still blushed at the attention but quickly pushed it away. This was the hardest part, convincing the Hokage, a man with decades of experience in all manners of shinobi and the strongest person in Konoha. She was like an actress about to perform to the most scrutinizing critic in the world. Everything had to be perfect. She had to be submissive but not too submissive. She had to be friendly but still guarded. She had to answer any questions he might have in the right way with just enough truth and lies all tied together so that he would allow her to stay.

"This is Hana," Kakashi introduced. "She's a shouyou -nin asking for settlement in Konoha."

"I see," Sarutobi replied. "We should discuss this in my office then and you can give your report after that."

Kakashi nodded and turned to his Gennins, "Well Team that's it for the day. You go home and take today and tomorrow off. After that we'll get back into training."

Sasuke immediately turned to leave. The less time around other people the better he felt. Or at least that was what he tried to convince himself of anyway. Sakura seeing Sasuke leaved turned to follow. She was halfway to the door when she noticed that Naruto was not with her, bugging her. Turning around she saw Naruto watching Kakashi escort 'Hana' out of the Mission Room. "Naruto are you coming?" she called.

"Huh," Naruto turned to Sakura, "Oh sorry Sakura-chan, I think I'll stay here until Hana-chan comes back."

For a moment Sakura was conflicted. 'Hana' had become a friend to her in the time they traveled and she wanted to hear the news also. On the other hand Sasuke had just left and this was her opportunity to have some alone time with him. She decided to settle for a simple compromise, "Tell me anything that happens ok."

"Sure Sakura-chan," Naruto said before heading to the Hokage's Office as Sakura ran off to catch up with Sasuke.

Inside the Hokage's Office Haku was afraid. Her entire purpose was on the line. If she could not convince the Hokage to let her stay then her only purpose in life to since Zabuza would be at an end. The Hokage for his part looked at Haku with a measuring gaze. He could tell she was good, how good he did not know. He knew she afraid by the subtle shifting of her eyes. He knew she was experienced by the way she carried herself. What he did not know was if she could be trusted.

"Well let us begin," the Sandaime said taking his seat behind his desk. "What is you name, age, and country of origin."

"My name is Hana, I have no last name. My age is fourteen. And my country of origin is Ocean Country." All this was true, even her country of origin her family have moved to the Land of Water when she was very young but she was born in Ocean Country. So there was no deception there. 'Best to honest when you can when on an infiltration mission,' she thought.

"What are your abilities and level of strength?" Sandaime had to know in order to put her into the shinobi forces.

"I am proficient in Medic training and wind based ninjutsu," Haku repeated her the story she told Kakashi. She then decided to add a little more in order show she was willing to give a little to get a little. "I also know a couple Water ninjutsu as well. And I know for certain I can fight a Chunin and live."

"So you have been to the land of Water then," the Sandaime said and Haku nodded. "Who trained you?"

This was where it was difficult as her only trainer had been Zabuza. Still that did not mean she did not know of other ninja. "Her name was Toiya Aki, I do not know much about her other than what she taught me and that she was originally from Whirlpool Country."

Kakashi looked at the Sandaime for moment. He had heard of Toiya Aki she had a reputation of teaching orphans that had the talent to be ninjas. The Sandaime on the other hand saw that she was lying but he suspected that she would lie about something. "You're lying," he said flatly causing Haku to flinch but only slightly. "Tell my who trained you or this interview is over."

Haku had to think fast. She could not lie, if she did her life's new mission would end in failure. If she told the truth Kakashi would most likely kill her on the spot. Thankfully Haku could improvise, "I cannot tell you who," the Sandaime was about to speak when she continued quickly. "I promised never to reveal his identity in order to protect him. He took me in when I was young and took care of me. I promised to protect him in anyway I could and revealing his identity would put him in danger."

The Sandaime contemplated her answer. 'She's still not telling the whole truth, obviously. But she is sincere about the promise I can tell that.' "I assume he is a Missing-nin then," Haku nodded if somewhat reluctantly, "Will not revealing his identity put Konoha at risk."

"No," Haku said firmly and truthfully. Zabuza was dead and she did not think the death of one Jounin and four Gennin would jeopardize an entire Hidden Village.

For several minutes silence reigned in the room. The Sandaime was weighing everything he had been told and his analysis. Kakashi was waiting for the order to either arrest 'Hana' or let her go. Haku was sitting perfectly still while waiting the decision that would decide her fate.

Looking into her eyes Sarutobi searched for 'Hana's' true motive. He knew that if he could determine that then he could predict her actions. The difficult part of this was the girl in front of him was extremely guarded her true motives hidden deep in her mind. 'She's as guarded as Naruto is out in the village,' the Sandaime thought. Then something clicked the part of this girl that had eluded him from the time the interview began. It was something she kept hidden that no one but a person like the Sandaime could see. A person with a lifetime of life and death situations, seeing countless people live and die, and the emotions that those events bring. 'She has lost something or better yet someone very close to her and just recently. And now she is searching for meaning in her life, just like Naruto before he decided to be Hokage.' "I have made my decision," Haku tensed, "You may remain in Konoha. For an unspecified amount of time you will be watched and put on probation. After your probation is up you can join the Shinobi force and after an assessment of your skills your rank will be determined. Regardless of your choice however you will be required to submit jutsu as a sign of good faith to the village archives. This must be done with in the first month of your stay or else your probation will be revoked and you will be banished from Fire Country. Is that understood?"

"Yes Hokage-sama," Haku answered. 'An unspecified amount of time. I will have to be extra careful until my probation is up. Once it is then I can have my revenge.'

"Then welcome to Konoha Hana-san," the Sandaime said with a kind smile. "I shall arrange housing for you as soon as I can and see about getting you temporary work."

"Thank you Hokage-sama," Haku bowed deeply. When she rose she asked, "If it is possible may I be near Naruto-san?" This caused a questioning look to appear on Sarutobi's face. "He is the first person I met from Konoha and I would feel more comfortable near someone I know."

"I think that can be arranged," the Sandaime replied. "For now though you will be staying at the Lily Hotel. It is a clean place if a bit small and out of the way. Kakashi will show you there. Now I must get back to work."

"Thank you for your hospitality Hokage-sama," Haku said with another deep bow.

After she rose Kakashi moved towards the door and opened it to reveal Naruto standing there leaning against wall opposite the door. "Naruto what are you doing here?"

"I wanted to wait for Hana-chan," Naruto admitted. "Is she going to be allowed to stay here?"

"Yes she is Naruto," Kakashi answered gesturing for Haku to come with him.

"Alright!" Naruto yelled dashing up to Haku, grabbing her hand and dragging her down the hall.

Once Kakashi closed his door Sarutobi spoke softly, "I truly hope she finds what she is really looking for.


	2. Chapter 2

Team 7's training session had just ended

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and only use it for entertainment purposes.

Team 7's training session was just ending. This particular session included stealth and stalking training; mainly seeing how close each of the Gennins could get to Kakashi before he detected them. Kakashi had recently decided to up his team's stealth do to a character flaw he started to notice; namely the want to show off.

Each Gennin had this flaw but for different reasons. Sasuke wanted to show off to prove his innate superiority over the others, especially after Naruto had defeated a person Sasuke had not. Naruto showed off simply because he wanted everyone to notice him, twelve years of being ignored by just about everyone would do that to anyone. And finally Sakura felt the need to show off to impress Sasuke; ironically the more she showed off the less Sasuke wanted to do with her and thus making her want to show off more. The primary problem with this attitude was it would lead the Gennins into taking unnecessary risks in later missions, so it was best to stop such attitudes now.

The results of today's training were their group stalking skills still needed work, but were improving and training their individual skills showed a significant improvement with Sasuke and Sakura and a marginal one with Naruto. With Sakura her analytical mind would often come to bare and she would devise strategies that would distract Kakashi and allow her to move closer to him, the problem with this was her plans were often time consuming and lacked flexibility. Sasuke was more straightforward, if a little too simple. He was good there was no denying that, but he tented to use the same skill over and over again and become too predictable. Naruto, he was just to unpredictable to classify, sometimes he would use extremely complicated plans that while brilliant were too complex and would backfire or he would be too straight forward and walk right out into the open. Still they were improving; Kakashi had even convinced Naruto to turn his jumpsuit inside out so that the dark blue inside would be out, turns out his suit was reversible.

"Alright, you've all improved since the last time," Kakashi announced. "You still need to work on something; Sasuke you need to be more versatile, if you use the same strategy over and over you can get caught in a trap or ambush." Sasuke gave a slight frown but nodded anyway. The goal for the day was for him to reach within ten meters but Kakashi caught him at twenty and hit him with a water balloon. The idea that the water balloon could have been an acid bomb really brought the whole exercise into focus. "Sakura you need to think of shorter plans, if you take too long your target may not be there when you arrive." Sakura nodded, her task was to get within fifteen meters of Kakashi with in a fifteen minute window, she planned it out to the last second only to arrive and find Kakashi nowhere around. He came out of the tree line five minutes later saying that sometimes the target could arrive or leave early or late, it was best to be flexible in your timing. "Naruto, you reached your goal for today, you got with twelve meters of me and your plan was rather unique, but you still lack consistency. Being unpredictable to an enemy is a great advantage a ninja can have however if you are so unpredictable that even your team cannot count on you, you become a hindrance rather than helpful." Naruto grumbled for a moment but nodded. His plan of using Kage Bushin (Shadow Clone) disguised as various other ninja using Henge (Transformation) in the village to talk about a new book in the Icha Icha (Come Come) line distracted Kakashi long enough for Naruto to reach his goal. The problem Naruto was having was he could never get the same results with different plans more than twice in a row; his goal was to get the same results at least three times. Naruto would either be too impatient or jump the gun or too cautious and not act quickly enough. He really needed to find the right balance between the two extremes.

"Hey Sensei, when are you going to teach us something more then just stealth training?" Naruto asked as he took off his jacket to turn it orange out.

"Not until you all reach your individual goals," Kakashi answered. This got frowns from all three Gennins, they were hoping to get more something dynamic when Kakashi said he was upping their training after they got back from Wave. "Tell you what, if you three all reach your individual goals by the end of the week, I'll teach you how to seal equipment directly onto your bodies'. That way if you lose your primary equipment you will always have back up." That perked the Gennin up, knowing that kind of skill would be very useful for any ninja. "Well that's it for today, tomorrow you have the day off but the next day we'll practice your stealth and stalking skills again." With a puff of smoke Kakashi left.

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura started to walk out of the training area together when they met an increasingly familiar face waiting for them, 'Hana.' When she moved into Naruto's building she started accompanying him or waiting for him during their training sessions. Her excuse was Naruto and Team 7 were the only people she knew in town. This was true, but not the entire truth. She was really there to determine their strengths and weaknesses for when her probation was finally up and she could move freely and then kill the members of Team 7.

"Hey Hana-chan," Naruto greeted with Sakura giving a friendly wave and Sasuke nodding just a little. Sasuke and Sakura liked having Hana around as she often kept Naruto distracted and a little quieter. "How was your job?"

"It was fine Naruto-kun," Haku answered. She started working for a kimono shop after the first couple of days in the village. One of Haku's many skills was how to detect hidden weapon on a person through different styles of clothing, this gave her an eye for different styles and what would look best on a person. "I am off for the rest of the day."

"That's great!" Naruto exclaimed. "Maybe you could help me some of my stealth training?" Team 7 knew that Haku was at least as good as a Chunin and knew something they did not, she had already taught them how to do a controlled slide down a wall using the tree climbing exercise; a great tool for moving silently as well as quickly.

"I think I can help you a little," Haku answered. She helped out Team 7 every now and then to instill a sense of trust in them, making it easy to stab them in the back later. At least that was the idea before, now she was not so sure of her reasons. The more time she spent with Team 7 the more she could relate to them on some level. Sasuke had the sense of betrayal she felt just before she killed her father when he tried to kill her. Naruto led a rather hard life, as so many people seemed to fear and hate him. And Sakura was like that unsure girl she used to be when she first started training under Zabuza. "Sakura-san, Sasuke-san would either of you like to join us?"

Sasuke took a moment for giving a polite, "No," and then walked off. Sasuke was polite around 'Hana' for one simple reason. Her mannerisms reminded him of the higher-class visitors that would come to the Uchiha compound when he was a child. Even if he did not like those people he was still forced to be polite by his parents. Although 'Hana' was a lot more tolerable then some of those people.

"Um, maybe later," Sakura replied. She wanted to spend time with another girl, who was not interested in Sasuke, but also wanted to spend some alone time with Sasuke. The desire to be with Sasuke won out so Sakura turned Hana's' offer down.

"Shall we go then Naruto-kun?" Hana asked. "We can discuss what happened today and see if anything needs to change or be improved." Naruto nodded and left with her.

After they left Sakura turned Sasuke, "Would you like to get something to eat Sasuke-kun?"

"No," Sasuke's reply was short and a bit cold but not as it could have been. Sakura took this as a good sign that Sasuke was starting to open up a little. In reality Sasuke was just too distracted with thinking up a new strategy for the next training session.

As Naruto and Haku walked through Konoha proper, she once again took notice of the hatred underlined with fear of those around them. It was a common occurrence now, but one that still confused her. Haku suspected the people's hatred came from Naruto's stranger power but she did not know what that power could be. She had made some small inquiries about Naruto, but the only thing she could ever get out of anyone was that Naruto was somehow 'no good.' Other than that the people were very tight lipped when it came to Naruto. This just made Haku look closer at the blonde, and the closer she could see a bit of herself in him. 'It does not matter how much a like we are, I will still kill him, for Zabuza,' Haku thought. But there was less conviction in these thought then there was even a week ago.

"Hey Hana-chan," Naruto spoke up, "After we're done talking about a knew strategy for tomorrow do you think, um you could…I don't know stay for dinner?"

Haku paused for a moment Naruto asking her dinner was a first and the way he asked was on the surface out of character for him. Just below the surface Naruto's unease was understandable, he could count the number of people who stayed to eat at his apartment on one hand and all of them were full grown men. She would be the first female near his age that might say yes. 'That would explain the slight blush,' Haku thought. "Yes Naruto I would be delighted to stay." Naruto's face shown like a the sun at that point, "With one condition, you serve something other than ramen. A little verity in your food can only be good for you."

Naruto's face dropped for a fraction of a second but then his smile returned. He was about to reply when his special awareness alerted him that they were being watched, and not by the usual villagers. Someone out there was a ninja trying to hide his or her appearance but for a brief moment lost their concealment. Looking around he tried to spot the person but his or her presences faded again and Naruto could not locate them.

"Is something wrong Naruto-kun?" Haku asked. She knew they were being followed, two Anbu assigned to watch her and a Gennin Kunoichi around Naruto's age. Naruto apparently detected the Gennin when her self-concealment dropped for just a second. 'Naruto's special awareness is improving, even a few days ago he would missed the slip.'

"I thought I felt someone watching us for a second," Naruto said.

"It was probably one of the Anbu that are assigned to watch me until my probation is up," Haku answered. Haku lied because she knew whom the Kunoichi was as she silently observed her when Haku first detected her. Haku deduced from her observation that the kunoichi had a crush on Naruto but was just to shy to say anything. If Naruto knew about her, the kunoichi might lose whatever nerve she had to even be around Naruto much less work up more to talk to him. 'Maybe I can talk to her,' Haku thought. 'Naruto could use another friend.' What Haku failed to realize at the moment was she was thinking about herself as Naruto's friend.

"I don't understand why Jii-san even has those guys following you," Naruto said for the tenth time sense learning of 'Hana's' escorts.

"I am sure he is just following the proper procedure Naruto-kun," Haku said for the tenth time. "Come we should head home." Naruto nodded as he followed her towards their apartment complex.

Down the street Hyuuga Hinata came out from behind an ally wall. Like most of her spare time she was following Naruto debating with herself on whether or not she should walk up to him and talk to him. And like every time before she found herself just to shy to take that first step.

Recently that first step had become harder with Naruto's new friend, 'Hana.' Hinata had first seen her the second day Naruto was back from his C-Rank Mission. 'Hana' had walked up to Team 7's training ground and waited for Team 7 to finish. At first Hinata thought she was one of Uchiha Sasuke's admirers trying to get close to him. This theory was shot down as soon as Naruto started talking to the new girl in an open and friendly manner. Hinata had never seen Naruto talk to anyone like that with the exception of Iruka-sensei and the Hokage. This meant the girl was a very close friend. Hinata had run off after seeing that not knowing if she should be happy or sad; happy because Naruto made a real friend close to their age or sad because that friend was not her.

It took her another three days; mostly do to missions and training, to look in on the new girl. She found out the basic information; her name was 'Hana', she was a **Shouyou-nin** (Wandering Ninja), and she arrived with Team 7 from their mission in Wave Country. This told Hinata other things; this 'Hana' was a strong confident young kunoichi that got to know Naruto and made friends with him. In other words everything Hinata was not.

Hinata was saddened at that revelation. However she decided to persevere just like Naruto had always done. She continued watching and following Naruto giving him her support if only silently. She also took to watching 'Hana' whenever she was with Naruto, which was a lot. Hinata hopped that she might learn a thing or two from watching 'Hana' and maybe boost her skill and thus her confidence.

This new routine brought her to now. She had just watched Naruto and 'Hana' talk about Naruto's training and what 'Hana' might be able to help him with. Then the shock came when Naruto asked 'Hana' to eat at his place. The shock caused Hinata to temporarily to drop her concealment technique, a method of softening ones foot steps as well as blending into the background, this caused Naruto to be alerted to her presence. Quickly Hinata ducked behind a nearby wall and resumed her technique while holding her breath. When she heard them walk away Hinata let out her breath and sighed in both frustration and relief. Relief that she was not found and frustration at once again hiding from Naruto. 'Maybe next time,' Hinata thought before leaving the small alley and heading home.

That evening one of the Anbu assigned to watch Haku stood before the Hokage. He was here to give the first bi-weekly report on his observations on the young woman. The Hokage who had just finished his paperwork for the day sat back with an audible sigh feeling he achieved a great victory. "So tell what you've seen," Sarutobi ordered.

"Hana-san appears to be a soft spoken young kunoichi," the Anbu replied. "She seems to have adjusted well to living here. With the first three days she found a stable job and has moved into the low rent apartment complex Uzumaki lives in. Her job is working at Ishida's Kimono's and appears to be doing fairly well. On her off hours she usually spends time with Team 7, mostly around Uzumaki. The two seem to have become rather close friends and she has helped him and his teammates with their training. Nothing serious as to subvert Hatake's training but it does seem to help. We are almost certain she is aware of our presence but she has given no direct indication only small gestures. Stiffening slightly if we get to close, waking up just as one of us passes her window, that kind of thing. If she is able to detect us that means her skills are above that of a Chunin." The Anbu paused for a moment then added, "I find this a bit disturbing as **Shouyou-nin are weaker then Village shinobi. I believe she may be a Nuke-nin (Missing Ninja) that is trying to hid out here."**

**"Hhmm, while I agree with you that the possibility she be a Nuke-nin is legitimate your reason is false," the Sandaime reprimanded. "While most Shouyou-nin are weaker then Village ninja some are just as strong or stronger. Especially those that are on their own, they have to be. And you should know I check the latest bingo books from all the Hidden Villages, there are no Nuke-nin matching Hana's description." The Anbu nodded feeling slightly disgruntled at the light reprimand but kept silent knowing the Hokage had more to say. "Her interaction with Team 7 and others in the village how would you characterize them?"**

**"With Team 7 she is friendly if still a little guarded, though she seems more relaxed around Uzumaki. With Haruno she mostly gives subtle clues on how a kunoichi should act. Uchiha she's a formal though he seems to like that, a pleasant change from his fan-girls I bet. And with Hatake she is polite but the most guarded around. With the other villagers she is polite and professional at work but a bit cold and distant outside of work, especially around Uzumaki. I am confident that she figured how he is treated, not that it's hard not to figure out."**

**"Could she suspect why he is treat that way?" The Hokage asked.**

**"She has given no indication by her actions that she know but has made some small inquires," the Anbu answered. "She is clearly trying figure out why, but has not received any information other than Uzumaki is quote 'No Good.'"**

**"Has she shown any hostility to anyone?" Sandaime inquired.**

**"Other than stern looks at people who are a little to overt about Uzumaki, no," the Anbu reported. "As things stand I do not believe she is a threat to the village."**

**"Thank you, you are dismissed," the Hokage ordered. The Anbu nodded and with a puff of smoke left the room. 'So young Hana is doing more for Naruto and even a little for Sasuke than most have done for years. I hope things continue to go well; I would hate to have to imprison or kill her. She seems just what Naruto needs, a real friend."**


	3. Chapter 3

Team 7 walked through their training area around noon

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and only use it for entertainment purposes.

Team 7 walked through their training area around noon. The difference this time as opposed to the other was the Gennins were all wearing bathrobes and carrying matching towels and a change of clothes. The reason for this was Kakashi had told them their next training exercise would get them wet and they should dress properly. When they arrived they met 'Hana,' wearing a light gray pair of pants and dark blue long sleeved shirt made out of heavier material used for work clothes. This surprised the Gennin as she would usually wait until after training to meet up with them.

"Ah Hana, I'm glad you showed up on time," Kakashi said pleasantly, earning him a glare from all three Gennin. They had to wait for two hours in nothing but bathrobes with their swimsuits underneath. Those two hours rather embarrassing time for the three. "I asked Hana here to help with this next stage of training. I'm not too good at training in the basics. I'm more used to training Anbu recruits, and before you ask none of you are ready for that kind of training." The Gennin looked disgruntled at hearing that but did not say anything. "Anyway Hana here has shown she can teach you the basics better than me, like when she showed you that wall sliding."

"What is our next training exercise Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"You will be learning to walk on water," Haku answered for Kakashi. "This is the second technique in learning to control and form your chakra. To properly walk on water you must learn to adjust the amount of chakra you use in an instant and maintain the proper shape so you do not fall in."

"Why do we need to learn to shape our chakra?" Sasuke asked. "Learning to adjust our chakra on the fly will help in controlling our jutsu but what will shaping our chakra do."

"Immediately nothing," Kakashi answered. "But later it will help you create your own jutsu. Learning to shape your chakra is an iatrical part of making a jutsu. But for now lets get started shall we?" Kakashi and Haku slowly walked out to the center of the small stream they were near then turned back to the Gennin. "Alright each of you try and reach us."

The Gennin looked at 'Hana' and Kakashi then looked at each other. Their faces turned slightly red as they once again realized they were in nothing but bathrobes and swimsuits. After a few seconds of silence and inaction Naruto, being the boldest of the group, shucked off his orange bathrobe revealing his forest green swim trunks. Unnoticed to him Sakura's blush increased at seeing Naruto's rather well formed body. Surprisingly Haku also developed a blush. Next was Sasuke, he took off his blue robe revealing his white trunks and lightly tanned skin. Sakura's blush now went from dark pink to cherry red. And finally Sakura took off her white robe revealing a black one-piece swimsuit underneath. Naruto and surprising Sasuke stared at her for more than a few seconds before turning away with their own blazing blushes

Kakashi happily smiled at his Gennin's reactions to each other. He found it highly amusing to see them squirm in embarrassment and made a mental note to tease them a bit latter. After his amusement left he looked them over with an analytical eye, judging their bodies and which type of physical training would best be suited for them.

Sakura's body was a bit on the delicate side for a dedicated kunoichi, she should have more of an athletic female body rather than a model kind. Kakashi suspected this was because of the typical diets most girls her age put themselves through. Still Kakashi noticed he body was developing the proper muscle tone and he knew her eating habits were changing, after all only a proper diet would keep a ninja in top shape. For her training Kakashi would have her train like a dancer. This would keep her limber, but also give her the strength and stamina she needed. Plus if he could talk to some of his old Anbu comrades he may be able to show her some dance-based taijutsu a little later.

Sasuke's body was wirier rather than muscular, not surprising considering his clan's taijutsu relied on reflexes and counterattacking. Kakashi figured some sprinting drills and some hard stretching exercises would further his physical development. For taijutsu Kakashi would encourage him to continue his family's style as well as teach him some of the aspects of his own. Kakashi's was more based on speed so it would be a good supplement to the Uchiha's flexibility.

Naruto's body was surprisingly in near perfect proportion, if a bit on the short side. His musculature was a near perfect balance of speed, strength, and stamina with only slight traces of fat and that was more attributed to his young age. Considering Naruto's eating habit of nothing but ramen this was surprising it meant Naruto trained his body more than Kakashi gave him credit for. To keep up this balance Kakashi would have to make sure Naruto kept an equal amount of weight training, stretching and running. For taijutsu he figured Naruto should learn something similar to Asuma's, both had the same general build, and if Naruto could learn to calm down from the chain smoker then so much the better.

Kakashi ended his analysis to watch his Team's first attempt at water walking, mostly to enjoy the show as 'Hana' would be the one to offer suggestions. The first to take a step onto the slow moving, deep and rather cold stream was Sasuke. Like with the tree climbing back in Wave he put too much chakra into his foot and tripped into the water. Naruto laughed his ass off at that and took his own step, only to fall right through as he did not put enough chakra into his feet. Sakura walked up to the edge of the water confident that her near perfect control would keep her a float. This attitude ended when she took her second step and fell into the stream just like the boys.

Haku was amused at the Gennin's attempts. One thing all shinobi had in common was they all got wet when they first tried the water walking exercise. Pushing down her laughter she walked up to the Gennin who were pouting (Sakura), frowning (Sasuke), or sulking (Naruto). Kneeling down so that she was eye level to them she explained what they did wrong, "Sasuke you put too much chakra into your feet and blew the water away thus making you trip. Naruto you put too little chakra into your feet and thus you passed right through the surface. And Sakura you forgot to adjust your chakra to the changing movement of the water and thus the surface move out from under you." Then Gennin nodded and moved to the shore to try again.

This time Sakura went first with the boys watching her. She took a couple of steps then wobbled a little, found her balance again and took another step, only to fall through the water once more. They waited for Sakura to resurface to hear 'Hana's' explanation why Sakura failed this time. When Sakura surfaced and 'Hana' did not say anything they knew she was waiting for them. She smiled at them letting them know she was going to get entertainment out of all three Gennin. With a resigned sigh both started to walk on the stream. Sasuke made it three steps before he fell in once again and Naruto only made it two.

When all three got the bank of the stream they waited for 'Hana's' instruction. Instead of explaining what went wrong this time she asked a question, "What do you think went wrong this time?"

For a moment the Gennin looked thoughtful, trying to figure out where they went wrong. It was Sasuke who got the answer first, "We forgot to shape our chakra."

"Correct Sasuke-san," Haku said pleasantly. "Now the question is, what is the proper shape needed to keep you afloat?"

"A boat's hull," Sakura answered. "The shape of a boat's hull is the most efficient shape for the displacement of the water to keep us afloat."

"What does the shape of a boat's hull look like?" Naruto asked.

"Like this Naruto," Kakashi said making a rough shape of a boat in the dirt on the bank.

"Oh," Naruto said. He put his hands into a hand seal and then stepped out onto the water. After making a few adjustments to his chakra he took another step, then another and finally a fourth, on the fifth step he fell through.

"Well looks like Naruto's got the concept down," Kakashi said happily. "All he needs now is to practice." He turned to Sasuke and Sakura, "Well you two what are you waiting for?" The two blinked for a moment then went to the water's edge and walked out. Sasuke make it six steps before he fell through and Sakura made it ten steps. "Looks like you've got the concept down now. I've got some errands to run, you guys keep practicing, if you want to take a break go ahead I'll be back in a few hours. And remember just because you're training doesn't mean you have to over do it. Take a chance to relax every once and a while." With that bit of advice Kakashi strolled off with his book in front of his face, he had to talk to some people about his students learning their taijutsu.

An hour later Team 7 was taking Kakashi's advice, they were relaxing by the bank. All three had made significant progress and were able to walk to the opposite side of the stream and halfway back. It was an unspoken goal that until they could walk back and forth across the stream at least once without tripping or falling they had not mastered water walking. For now though they were taking a break and eating a late lunch that 'Hana' provided. 'Hana' had declined to join them sighting she had to return to work.

"I wonder when Hana-chan's probation will be up?" Naruto asked out of the blue.

"Hard to say," Sakura replied. "I mean it's really up to Hokage-sama but I really don't think it'll be much longer. Hana is really nice."

"Well I hope its' not too much longer," Naruto said. "It'd be great to go on a mission with her."

"I doubt we would go on mission with Hana," Sakura said. "She's at least a Chunin and we wouldn't go on missions with Chunin until we become ones ourselves."

"Then how do we become Chunin?" Naruto asked.

"By passing the Chunin Exam, Dobe (Dead Last)," Sasuke answered. "If you had paid attention in class you would know that."

"Screw you, Teme!" Naruto shouted then was smacked on his head by Sakura.

"Don't call Sasuke that Naruto!" Sakura scolded.

Rubbing his head Naruto asked, "Well if we need to take the Chunin Exam, when is it?" Sakura and Sasuke looked at each other for a moment wondering if the other knew. Since neither answered Naruto concluded, "So neither of you know, huh." Sakura shook her head no and Sasuke just looked away.

"Maybe we should ask Kakashi-sensei tomorrow," Sakura suggested. Her teammates had no problem with that. "Well I think we should get back to training." Naruto and Sasuke nodded and the three continued their training.

As his students were training Kakashi was wondering around the Hokage Tower. The two people he was looking for would show up here eventually. He was here to talk to Sarutobi Asuma and his old Anbu subordinate Uzuki Yugao about helping with his team. Until recently Kakashi had not taken to training his team very hard, an over sight he could admit to himself. After Wave where a lot of mistakes were made that should not have been Kakashi decided to train his team seriously. When he did this he noticed the glaring weaknesses of two of his subordinates, Sakura and Naruto. Sakura had a great mind, when it was not focused on Sasuke. However was weak physically and she needed to change that. Yugao could help with that, her dance like fighting style would suit Sakura near perfectly. Naruto for all his rough edges and lack of coordination was in great physical shape and a rather devious mind. All he needed was the proper guidance and he truly would be great. Part of that guidance would be to teach him to fight correctly and Asuma's straightforward hard and grappling style taijutsu would be great for Naruto. Kakashi was already working on unleashing Naruto's unconventional yet devious mind when it came to battlefield tactics.

After an hour of wondering Kakashi found one of his targets, Yugao. "Yo, Uzuki you got a minute?"

"Hatake?" Yugao tone sounded surprised. "Yeah I just got off duty. What do you want?"

"Don't know if you heard but I passed a team this year," Kakashi said. "A couple of my students are in need of a little extra training."

"So why come to me?" Yugao asked.

"Well one of them, Haruno Sakura would be good for your fighting style," Kakashi answered. "Similar body frame as you had at her age, pretty limber and quick but needs to build some stamina and get a real fighting style."

"So you think she would be good using my Shi-S**uteppu Ryu (Four Dance Step Style)?" Yugao nodded. "No offense Hatake but she's your student why don't you teach her how to fight?"**

**"I've learned I'm not good at teaching the basics so I need some help on that," Kakashi admitted. "And besides you owe me for covering for you, so you could spend that weekend with Gekko a year ago."**

**"Fine I'll teach the girl the basics of my style," Yugao grudgingly agreed. "But after this we're even."**

**"Fine, fine," Kakashi said happily. "Just let me know when you're available and I'll set it up."**

**"I've got a mission with my squad this week," Yugao said. "I'll be back next week and have a couple of days off. We can start then."**

**"Thanks Uzuki," Kakashi said walking off to find his second target.**

**Kakashi found Asuma coming out of the Hokage's Office. From the look on Asuma's face the meeting between father and son was a bit strained this time. Though if the slight smirk on his face was any indication the meeting was about Konohamaru rather than a professional issue.**

**"Hey Kakashi what are doing here?" Asuma asked his fellow Jounin.**

**"Looking for you actually," Kakashi answered. "Got a favor I need from you."**

**"Oh and what would this be?" Asuma asked. "If it's about me putting a down payment on the latest in your book series for you while on a mission you can forget about it. The last time I did that Kurenai wouldn't talk to me for a week."**

**"No this has nothing to do with that," Kakashi replied. "The favor is regarding one of my students, Uzumaki Naruto."**

**"Yeah what about him?" Asuma asked as smirk formed on his face. He had just finished an argument with his father about Asuma allowing Konohamaru to use the **Orioke no jutsu (sexy no jutsu). Asuma thought it was hilarious that his father kept getting caught by that jutsu and allowed his nephew to continue to use it. His father saw other wise as it 'took away the dignaty of his possition.' In fact the only reason Asuma would tell Konohamaru to stop would be if Kurenai told him too. 'I'm so whipped.'

"Naruto needs some help with his taijutsu," Kakashi answered. "His body frame is perfect for you're style. Almost perfect balance between speed, strength and stamina."

"Well technically I don't have a style," Asuma said as he took out a cigaret and lit it up. "I just threw together some techniques and some grapples. Anyway I really don't have time to teach one of your students as I've got my own."

Kakashi knew Asuma was just baiting him. The Jounin had one of if not the laziest people in the village, Nara Shikamaru. The Gennin would only put enough effort into a task to get it done and that was if he did the task to begin with. Akimichi Chouji often followed his friends lead and Yamanaka Ino was still in 'little girl' mind set and spent most of her time doing what cilvilian girls would. This left Asuma plently of free time. But as Kakashi was the one who asked he was at the disadvantage, "What do you want?" Kakashi said flatly. He did not want to drag this out more than he had too.

Asuma smiled like a cat that just cornered a mouse. "The next time the Jounins have a guys night out, you're the one that has too ask Anko out," Asuma said.

Kakashi visibly swallowed at that. It became a semi tradition that all single male Jounin had to ask Mituashi Anko out at least once much to the entertainment of the others. The entertainment came from how Anko responded; either she said no with a kick to the testicles or she said yes with wrapping the poor man up in ninja wire and draggin him off. Kakashi was one of the ones that had gotten as 'yes.' That week still gave him 'wet nightmares.' "What else?" Kakashi asked not wanting a repeat of that week.

Asuma laughed at Kakahsi's nervous twitching. He knew the Copy Ninja would say no to that and nothing short of another Kyuubi Attack would make Kakashi ask Anko out again. Asuma just wanted to see the normally blaze Jounin squirm a little. "How about this, you pay for my team's next lunch meeting," Asuma suggested. His wallet could use a break from Chouji.

"You want me to pay for a meal where an Akimichi is attending?" Kakashi asked flatly. Asuma nodded his smile still in place. Kakashi thought about the offer for a few seconds compairing it the first offer. The choice was not hard, "Deal, anything is better than dealing with 'Mr. Shocky.'" Asuma looked at Kakashi in bilwilderment, "One of Anko's toys, trust my you don't want to know." Asuma quickly nodded at that, he really did not want to know. "Alright just tell me when you want to meet Naruto and I'll let him know."

"Have him meet me tomorrow at 8:00 A.M." Asuma said.

"That's when my team meets," Kakashi objected.

"I know and that will give me a good two hours to train him before you can have him," Asuma said with a smirk. "Don't forget Kakashi I've know you for a long time and I know you're at least two hours late for everything."

Kakashi just shrugged as there was no way to argue that, "Fine I'll let him know tonight that he's meeting with you tomorrow."


	4. Chapter 4

Kakashi was silently observing his team as they waited for him to show

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and only use it for entertainment purposes.

Naruto and Haku were out doing their weekly shopping. They started shopping together about three weeks ago when they ran into each other at the grocery store. This was one of the few unplanned run-ins between the two. When they saw each other each took one look at the others basic and quickly decided to help the other shop. For in Haku's opinion Naruto's basic contained far too much ramen and Naruto thought just the opposite, Haku did not have nearly enough. It was a battle of wills, stubbornness, and patients with each trying to convince the other who was right. To stranger watching them it amusing to see. The two argued like they were siblings; Naruto being too young to form a romantic relationship. The two argued back and forth about the merits of a well balanced diet, Haku, vs. the 'food of the Kami (Gods),' Naruto. Haku would calmly explain the benefits of eating fruits, vegetables, and grain help improve his physicality from making him taller to improving his eyesight and Naruto would counter with the with the complex carbohydrates from ramen were perfect for a growing shinobi as the slow burn were perfect for daily training. Haku then argued, with a trace of coldness, that eating too much ramen would build up fat and cholesterol in the blood system making it harder for a ninja to fight at peak strength. Naruto counter by pointing out the dozen low fat and low cholesterol packs of ramen saying ramen makers already had a variety for that. Haku then, with a glacier like quality in her voice, went into what a high salt diet would do to a person and that ramen was full of salt. Naruto picked up another box of ramen and was about to argue the low salt content. Haku interrupted Naruto's argument by quickly jabbing Naruto's throat at a pressure point that would keep him from talking. Haku said she would return his ability to speak if he bought more than just ramen when he shopping. Naruto held out for three days and would have held out longer except Sasuke mentioned that it was nice without Naruto's voice around and Naruto would never to anything to make Sasuke's time with him enjoyable. Thus Haku returned Naruto's ability to speak and won the grocery argument.

Now three weeks later Naruto and Haku carried a well-balanced mix of food: fruits, vegetables, grains, fish and even six boxes of ramen. Haku and Naruto's trip back to their apartment was interrupted by a load, "Hey Boss!" Naruto only had a second to place his groceries on the ground before deflecting a charging Konohamaru away from him and into a nearby patch of grass.

"Konohamaru! Don't try and tackle me when I'm carrying my groceries!" Naruto yelled. Konohamaru started attacking Naruto ever since he learned the Gennin was training under Asuma. The Academy Student got into his head that he could learn his Uncle's fighting style by attacking Naruto every chance he got. One of those times was when Naruto was shopping with 'Hana' and caused a week's worth of food to be ruined.

"But 'a ninja should always attack when the target is distracted,'" Konohamaru quoted Iruka. "And you're distracted when you have your groceries."

"He is correct Naruto-kun," Haku said smiling. "Though his attack would have been more successful if he had not shouted out first."

"Don't encourage him!" Naruto responded. "And there should be some kind of rule or law that keeps ninja from attacking another when carrying food." Naruto grumbled under his breath as he picked up his bags. "So what do you want Konohamaru?"

"I was playing ninja with Udon and Moegi when I saw you with your girlfriend and had to test myself against my greatest rival!" Konohamaru exclaimed proudly.

"Hana-chan is not my girlfriend!" Naruto replied vehemently. His and Haku's blush did not add credibility to his proclamation.

"Boss has a girlfriend! Boss has a girlfriend!" Konohamaru pointed and laughed as only a nine year old can.

"Why you brat!" Naruto yelled, "Kage Bushin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Skill)." An exact duplicate of Naruto, down to the groceries, appeared in a puff of smoke. The Kage Bushin dropped its groceries, causing then to disappear in a puff of smoke, as Naruto handed it his groceries and run after Konohamaru who had taken off.

Haku meanwhile giggled at Naruto and Konohamaru. "Will you take my groceries home as well? I should probably stop you from hurting Konohamaru too much"

"Sure Hana-chan," Naruto's Kage Bushin answered before shifting its bags so it could take hers.

Naruto just saw Konohamaru round the corner when he heard a yelp and an impact from the other side. When he reached the turn he saw Konohamaru on the ground and a strange blonde haired kunoichi with a large war fan on her back rubbing her stomach. "Hey you brat! What do you think your doing running into me!?" the kunoichi shouted.

"Sorry," Konohamaru said. "I wasn't watching were I was going." Konohamaru stood up and tried to bow in apology only for the kunoichi to slap him sending back to the ground.

"Sorry isn't good enough," the blonde kunoichi angrily said. She stopped rubbing her stomach to reveal a large brown stain on her clothing. "You made me spilled my drink all over myself!"

By now Naruto had seen enough and decided to step in. "Hey leave him alone! Konohamaru already apologized what more do you want!"

"You stay out of this!" the kunoichi exclaimed. "This isn't any of your business!"

"Well I'm making it my business!" Naruto countered dropping his hand to his kunai holster.

"You think you can stand up against us?" came a male voice from behind Naruto before wrapping his arms around Naruto.

After weeks of taijutsu and grappling Naruto's response was pure reflex. Naruto arms rose out and parallel to the ground to keep his assailant's arms from locking around him. Next he bent forward and took a small step back. Then he reached for his assailant's foot and pulled forward. This caused the assailant to stumble backwards and fall taking Naruto with him. With a role to the side Naruto brought the leg with him across his body. He then wrapped his legs around his opponent's legs and twisted his hips. This caused the leg he was holding to twist in an extremely painful angle. The pain caused Naruto's now victim to yell in pain. From start to finish Naruto had escaped and effectively immobilized his victim in under a second.

The kunoichi recovered from her shock quickly, "Kankuro!" she yelled reaching for her war fan. She was stopped by a firm grip on her wrist and a sharp needle placed at her temple.

"I would not do that if I were you," a feminine voice said as cold as ice. "You are foreign shinobi attacking a citizen and a shinobi of Konoha. That was a rather foolish of you as wars have been started over less." The kunoichi tensed for a moment then gave a slight nod in acceptance and submission. "Very good," Haku removed her senbon needle from the kunoichi temple and her hand from the girl's wrist. With a quick jump she now stood next to Naruto who had released the shinobi and proceeded to stand up. "Are you alright Naruto-kun, Konohamaru?"

"Yeah," Konohamaru said and Naruto nodded.

"Who are you and why are you in Konoha?" Naruto demanded. He was doing something normally out of character for him. Thinking about what he was going to do next. His training with Kakashi in order to get him to think more had paid off and Naruto was trying to get as much information as possible and analyze the situation. 'They're free now but they know we're not to be taken lightly. I don't know what that thing that guy has but the girl uses a war fan. That means she's at least a long distance fighter.' Naruto smiled when he felt three new presences show themselves. He recognized them immediately, Sasuke and 'Hana's' escort detail. 'From their looks they sense them too.'

"We're Gennin from Suna (Sand)," the kunoichi answered showing her ID. "I'm Temari and this is my brother Kankuro. We're here for the Chunin Exam."

"Combat from Chunin Exam Participants is strictly forbidden," the Anbu with a dog mask said. "As you were the aggressor in this I can revoke you participation in the Exam."

"You can't!" Kankuro protested. "That brat started all this!" He pointed to Naruto, "He reached for his kunai and I was just trying to protect my Neechan (Sister)!"

"Only after she hit Konohamaru!" Naruto objected.

"Is this true Sarutobi-sama," the second Anbu in a snake mask asked. Temari and Kankuro eyes widened in fear, as they recognized the family. Temari had just about attacked someone of close relation to the Sandaime Hokage. And being who they were made this situation even worse.

Konohamaru nervously looked back and forth between the Anbu, the foreign shinobi and Naruto and 'Hana.' The truth was all he remembered was getting smacked the kunoichi and Naruto showing up. The rest was just a blur as it happened so fast. "I…I don't know."

"Anbu-san," a new voice interrupted any comment. The group turned to a Suna Jounin with a sheet of cloth covering the right half of his face. With his was a red haired boy with a large gourd on his back. "I am Baki, Jounin of Suna. Please do not revoke my team's admittance to the Chunin Exam for Temari's lapse in judgment. We had just arrived from a long travel and were weary from the road. I am sure her temper got the best of temporarily and is most remorseful for her actions."

Temari took her queue and got down to her knees and placed her forehead on her hands, "I am sorry for my disreputable behavior, Sarutobi-sama. As the eldest child of the Kazekage, I should have accepted your apology when you made. I can only hope that my hasty actions did not sour the relations between our two Villages."

The Anbu stiffened ever so subtly at the addition of who these Gennin were. They had to tread very carefully or else all this could spiral out of control. Konohamaru, in way over his head, just stared in shock at the kneeling kunoichi. After a couple of seconds of silence Konohamaru spoke up, "Um…yeah I…I should have w…watched were I was going. S…so that's al…all right."

Hoping to avoid an international incident the dog Anbu jumped in. "As your subordinate has apologized and Sarutobi-sama has accepted I think we can let this one incident go."

"Yes," Baki answered. "We should put this unfortunate lack of control behind us so as not to strain our Village's relations. I thank you for your leniency and I shall put an official reprimand into Temari's file for causing a shall we say, 'unsightly commotion.'"

"That is fine with us," the snake Anbu nodded. "We shall also give Uzumaki-san a reprimand for 'acting rashly' in the face of a tense situation." Naruto was about to object but 'Hana' and Sasuke quickly and subtly told him not to. Naruto shut up but glared at the snake Anbu. "Come the four of you should speak with the Hokage about this." The Anbu ordered and the Konoha residents nodded and walked off towards the Hokage Tower.

Before they got far however the red haired boy spoke up, "You three, what are your names?"

"Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto answered.

"Uchiha Sasuke," Sasuke followed. Haku did not answer as she knew it was harder to hit a target when an assassin did not know the person's name.

"I am Subaku no Gaara (Gaara of the Desert)," Gaara introduced himself. "I hope to see you in the Exam." A sudden chill went down Sasuke and Naruto's spine though neither voiced their unease.

Kakashi silently observed his team as they waited for him to show. The Gennin had taken to the idea of doing some extra self-training while they waited for him. Sasuke was doing some of his sprinting drills on top of the small river; thus training in chakra control and speed. Sakura was practicing with her new tonfas while dancing to a beat only she could hear. The weapon had been Yugao's suggestion to give Sakura some more power in close quarter combat. And Naruto was literally wrestling with one of his Kage Bushin (Shadow Clones); one had the other in a chokehold while the other tried to break free.

Kakashi thought about his team and the changes they went through in the past two months. In terms of attitude and ability the three had improved significantly. Sakura was finally passed the 'little girl' mindset completely and now took her training seriously. Sure she still fawned after Sasuke, but now she only did it on her own time. On missions and training she attacked like a true Kunoichi. Sasuke's attitude changed for the better. He now valued what Naruto and Sakura could bring to the team and even learned some things from them. Like a how to break out of a rather nasty grapple Asuma showed Naruto a week ago and how to better regulate his chakra from Sakura. He still had a stand off attitude for the most part but less severe and this made him much easier to get along with. Naruto improved the most. He was calmer now and less likely to go shouting at every little thing. His skill in taijutsu improved from sloppy uncoordinated punches and kicks to a rather brutal mix of strikes and locks. Naruto was still bursting with energy but now it was tolerable to everyone.

After seeing Naruto suplex his clone out of existence Kakashi decided now was as a good a time as any to show up. When he did Naruto and Sakura rounded on him, "You're late!"

"Sorry I saw a dust devil and had to find a vacuum angle to slay it," Kakashi replied.

There was a moment of silence from Naruto and Sakura. Both were stunned that Kakashi actually came up with an original lie. Still it was an obvious lie, "Liar," the shouted.

Kakashi just gave them his happy eye, silently congratulating himself about his originality. "Well today we'll skip training." The Gennin looked at him with open curiosity. Before they could ask why Kakashi reached into his vest and pulled out three sheets of paper. "A couple of weeks ago you three asked me when the Chunin Exam was. Well last night the Hokage called a meeting to announce it would start at the beginning of next week. I've nominated you three to take it. If you want to all you have to do is fill these out and turn them in to room 301 on Monday." Immediately the sheets were snatched from his hand and the Gennin were looking them over. "Well take the next week to decide if you're going to take the exam or not. Don't worry about if one of you doesn't feel ready, this is strictly voluntary. Well bye." With a puff of smoke Kakashi vanished leaving the Gennin alone.

After Kakashi left he headed for the Hokage Tower. The Hokage had called him to ask his opinion on 'Hana.' The incident a couple of days ago raised a few eyebrows about the young woman. Some wanted to fully instate her as a Konoha kunoichi as she showed no hesitation in defending one of Konoha's citizens. Others wanted her probation revoked and kick her out of Konoha for coming to Naruto's aide and making a potentially volatile situation even worse. The majority however wanted to praise the girl but also wanted to settle any bruised ego's on Suna's part. In other words they wanted 'Hana' to remain on probation longer as the Hokage was thinking of lifting it after the Chunin Exam.

Kakashi before this incident was leaning towards allowing the probation to be lifted after the Chunin Exam. She had helped his team in more ways than Kakashi or any else could. Now he was siding with immediately instating 'Hana' in the shinobi ranks. Kakashi analyzed the incident with the mind of an Anbu Captain and field commander. To him 'Hana' acted just as one should have. She saw a threat and acted immediately to neutralize it with just enough force to get the job done with minimal collateral damage. She subdued the Suna kunoichi with enough skill and strength to show 'Hana' could handle her and backed off when the time was right and immediately went to see if Naruto and Konohamaru were alright. From there she had two options attack again or retreat. The Anbu escort reported she positioned herself next to Konohamaru so that if need be she could get him to safety quickly yet still attack if necessary. This showed that 'Hana' had great situational and tactical mindsets. Great qualities for an Anbu.

Back with the Gennin of Team 7 Naruto and Sasuke were looking at each both knowing they were face that Suna team and hoping that Gaara was strong. Both had two things in common, they lived alone and hated it with a passion and the second they like a challenge. Gaara looked like he would be a challenge.

Sakura looked at her sheet in deep thought. She was actually looking at it from a big picture kind of mind set. Was she, Naruto and Sasuke ready for the Exam? All three improved significantly since the mission to Wave. This was mostly mindset but she read that being a Chunin had less to do with physical strength and more to due with attitude and thinking. Chunin were the ones that a countries normal armies on the field of battle, while Jounin led the shinobi forces. This meant the responsibility to lead feel to Chunin more than a Jounin, as Jounin would lead smaller forces. 'Both Sasuke and Naruto have the strength to make it through this easily. They probably won't pass but the experience would be good for them and the next Exam they would have a better idea of what was expected. The question is am I good enough to make it through and not be a burden?' Sakura knew she was the weakest of the team, but like the others she had improved greatly. Enough that she was at least able to support her teammates in action and not just stand on the sidelines. 'Even if I'm not strong enough to compete with some of the others on my own I can be the deciding factor in a fight if I back up Naruto and Sasuke.' "Sasuke-kun, Naruto," the boys turned to her. "I think we should take the Exam. I'm sure we'll be able to get through it." Sasuke developed a smirk of appreciation and Naruto started to dance around proclaiming they would dominate the Chunin Exam.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and only use it for entertainment purposes.

The Chunin Exam finally came. All around the village Gennin, both native and foreign were making their way to the Konoha Ninja Academy. This included Team 7, they met at their usual training ground and then trekked their way to the building they left just six months ago. The whole trip was silent, each Gennin lost in their thoughts about the exam. Sakura was nervous, she knew she improved but was unsure if she was good enough to become a Chunin. Sasuke was full of anticipation, this was his chance to test his progress and maybe learn some foreign jutsu, all of which would help his life goal. Naruto he was excited, if he made Chunin he would prove to everyone who said he was a nothing but a loser he had what it took to be a shinobi.

Upon entering the Academy Team 7 noticed an ever-growing amount of Gennin as they proceeded through the building. When ascended the stairs Sasuke started to feel a slight headache, Naruto became dizzy and Sakura stopped. Bringing her hands together in a Tora (Tiger) seal Sakura whispered, "Kai (Release)." With a relieved exhale she noticed Sasuke and Naruto were staring at her. "We just passed through a Genjutsu. I canceled its affects as soon as noticed it."

"That must have been the headache I just had," Sasuke muttered. Coping Sakura's actions he released the Genjutsu as well. He noticed the stair way seemed to shrink and the door at the top changed from a three to a two.

"Kai!" Naruto tried to release the genjutsu but he noticed nothing changed showing nothing worked. "Kai!" Naruto tried harder and still nothing happened, "Damnit! KAI!" and still nothing happened. Then suddenly he noticed the stairwell shrank and the door at the top changed. He felt a hand on his left shoulder and saw Sakura's hand there. She had frown and slight glare showing her thoughts of Naruto's failed attempts at dispelling the Genjutsu. "What? You both know Genjutsu is my worst skill! The fact that I could feel anything at all means I'm doing better."

"Better isn't good enough," Sasuke replied. "That could be a liability." Without another word he made way up the rest of the stairs. Sakura shook her head and trailed off after him. Naruto flicked Sasuke off for a second before following Sakura.

Opening the door to the second floor Team 7 were surprised to see a group of about fifty or so Gennin clustered around a door marked 204. It took a moment to realize that this was part of the Genjutsu they just passed through. Guarding the door was two guys a couple of years older then Team 7. They were baring another Konoha team from entering. When the boy dressed in a green body suit tried to shove passed the guards he was shoved back causing him to fall back into the crowd. The crowd started to move away from the door increasing the amount of bodies in front of Team 7. "Hey we're trying to get through," Sakura said to a Gennin from Iwa (Stone). "Could you move please?" Gennin ignored her muttering about 'know it all Gennin.' Sakura tried another Gennin only to get the same response.

Sasuke and Naruto watched with growing amounts of annoyance. Where Sasuke would just scowl and stay silent Naruto would not, "Get out of the way!" All conversation stopped at Naruto's shout. Soon all fifty some odd Gennin were staring at the loud blonde. After a few seconds of silence, staring and no actions Naruto yelled again, "I said GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Startled by the shout the other Gennin started part and Team 7 made their way through the crowd and passed the guarded door.

As they walked passed one of the guards spoke up, "After all the fuss you up you'd think you would want to try and enter the room."

"Why would we do that?" Sasuke asked. "This is only the second floor." This got a surprised gasp from the majority of the crowd. "The Genjutsu started on the stairwell, we dispelled it as soon as we noticed."

"Not bad," the guard with a bandage across his nose said. "But not good enough!" He lunged at Sasuke who immediately tried to counter. The boy wearing the green body suit stopped Sasuke and the guard.

'I didn't even sense him move!' Sasuke thought. 'He looked so weak before, was he just acting?'

"So much for not showing our full strength," a girl dressed in Chinese style clothing with her hair tied up in buns. "And it was your idea too."

"Sorry," the green clad boy said. "I couldn't stop myself." He looked Sakura and started to blush, "You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen! Will you go out with me?"

Sakura gave the boy a once over. His hair was cut like a bowl, with so much gel is shined, and his eyebrows were so think they looked alive. "No way you're too weird!"

"You don't have to be so mean," the boy replied sadly.

"Lee," another boy spoke to the green dressed one. He had long black hair and eyes so pail the looked just off white. "Now that you've exposed us we should be going." Lee frowned for a moment then nodded and followed the bun haired girl and the white-eyed boy out down the hall.

Team 7 continued on passed the still stunned crowd and came to a small sparring area. There they met the Lee kid from a few minutes earlier. "You are Uchiha Sasuke," Lee said. "I am Rock Lee, I wish to test myself against strong people before the Exam begins."

"Hey what about me?" Naruto said. "I'm better than Sasuke." To try and prove his point Naruto charged Lee. Lee stood there until Naruto was a step away. Then with only a blur he stepped into Naruto's guard and delivered a spinning sweep to his legs. Naruto fell but rolled with the fall while throwing a hidden kunai from his sleeve. Lee dodged right into Naruto who grabbed Lee by the front of his suit, placed his right leg on Lee's sternum and fell backwards throwing Lee across the room.

Lee recovered easy enough with a flip and landed gracefully next to Sasuke. "You are indeed good, Uzumaki Naruto. But now I with to test Uchiha Sasuke."

"You have my attention," Sasuke said just before he threw a kick at Lee. Lee easily dodged the kick and countered with a spinning elbow to Sasuke's gut. 'He's fast and hits hard!' Sasuke thought wincing as he jumped clear. He went into a guarded stance before Lee charged. Unfortunately Lee moved so quickly he vanished from sight. He got inside Sasuke's guard and punched him in the face sending Sasuke sprawling to the ground.

"If this is all you have then the rumors about you are greatly exaggerated," Lee said.

Sasuke rubbed his nose making sure it was not broken before closing his eyes for a brief second. When he opened his eyes again they were red with two tomoe around each pupil. "You won't be able to fool these eyes," Sasuke said before dashing at Lee.

Lee remained in place until Sasuke was two steps away before vanishing in a burst of speed. The next thing Sasuke knew he was getting kicked in the chin sending him soaring into the air. A moment later he heard Lee speak from directly behind him, "Your eyes allow you to see through Ninjutsu, Genjutsu and Taijutsu. However the inherent flaw in your eye is that you can only react as fast as you have trained your body. Simply put you are not fast enough to match me. Now lets finish this." With that Lee started to finish the fight. He unwrapped the bindings on his right arm and started to twirl it around Sasuke. Just before it went tight a pinwheel caught the end and sticking into the wall throwing Lee off trajectory and allowing Sasuke to escape.

When Naruto and Sakura reached Sasuke they heard a deep voice shout, "Lee! What had I told you about using that jutsu!?"

"I'm sorry Gai-sensei," Lee apologized to a larger version him. Team 7 could not believe two people would dress the same way. Then again considering the similarities between the two they could have been father and son.

"You know what this mean right?" Gai asked. Lee nodded just before Gai punched Lee to the face sending him tumbling floor. In the blink of an eye Gai was next to Lee and suddenly the entire area was changed to a large beach scene at sunset. Gai was crying his eyes out cradling Lee like a dying son. "Lee! You must learn to control the fires of your youth for if you do not they will burn themselves out!"

"I know Gai-sensei," Lee stage whispered. "But the idea of facing such a strong person like Uchiha Sasuke caused my Fires to become like a forest fire, burning away all else!"

"I understand Lee!" Gai cried, "I feel the same way with my Eternal Rival! But that is when you must have the most control!" With an overly dramatic rise Gai stood up with Lee following. Still crying Gai continued, "If you loose control of you Fires of Youth the forest that fueled the fire with be nothing but ash!" Lee nodded vigorously his tears matched his sensei. "So to teach you control you have to take your punishment! Five Hundred laps around Konoha on your hands!"

"Yes Gai-sensei!" Lee saluted. "And if I cannot complete those laps I shall do a thousand crunches. And if I can't do that I shall…" Lee started to list off more and more insane tasks as he went on.

Meanwhile Team 7 was wondering what kind of Genjutsu they were in. All three were confused by the sudden change of scenery and spent the last few minutes trying to dispel it. Obviously none of them succeeded. "I don't know how to explain this but what we're watching his not a Genjutsu," Sasuke announced revealing his Sharingan was still activated. "I can't see even a trace of chakra." There was a tremble in his voice as he looked around frantically trying to find the source of the Genjutsu.

"Theses guys must be like super strong ninja to do this," Naruto said with awe in his voice. "First that Fuzzy Browed kid moves so fast we can't even see him and now this Super Fuzzy Browed guy can make a Genjutsu not even the Sharingan can see." Naruto turned to Sasuke, "Do you think some ninja have a bloodline that can stop the Sharingan?"

Sasuke blinked his Sharingan off and contemplated what Naruto said. In the records of the Uchiha Clan there was no mention on a Clan that could negate the Sharingan. If they lived in the same village there should at least be a mention of it. "I don't think so," Sasuke said though his voice was unsure.

"HAHAHA," Gai laughed ending the strange Genjutsu. "Impressed I see. What you have witnessed is not a bloodline but the fruit of hard work and the Flames of Youth, the child of the Will of Fire! With hard work and the Flames of Youth you can do," Gai blinked out of sight then he appeared right behind Team 7, "anything."

Team 7 was more than a little startled not a one of them even saw this guy twitch before he moved. 'How can anyone be that fast?' Sakura thought. 'Even Sasuke couldn't see him?' her inner voice agreed

"So you are Kakashi's students," Gai addressed them. "I've heard about you three. I have to say I'm impressed. I hope you give my team a good challenge at the Exam."

"You know Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, I am Maito Gai and he is my internal rival," Gai answered. "Our record is 50-49 in my favor, meaning I'm the stronger." That stunned Team 7 somewhat as they thought Kakashi was among if not the strongest Jounin in Konoha. "It looks like the Exam will start soon. You should all get to the room." With that Gai vanished once again.

"As thanks for fight me I will give you a warning," Lee said rewrapping his bindings. Naruto caught how much callous and scars were on his knuckles and nudged Sakura to point them out. She nodded in understanding. "On my team is the strongest Gennin in Konoha, Hyuuga Neji. It is him I truly wish to defeat but I would very much like to fight both of you two in the Chunin Exam. Farewell." Lee finished wrapping his binding and jumped up to the third floor.

Soon Team 7 was walking up the stairs talking about their encounter. "That Lee kid must train extremely hard," Sakura said. "Those wounds look mouths old. I wonder how long he trains to get like that."

"I would say he trains more than us," Naruto replied. "I mean look at our hands they are nothing like his." Naruto held up his hand and his knuckles had some callous on them but nowhere near the amount that Lee had, oddly enough to Team 7 there were no scars. Sasuke looked at his hands and saw they were much like Naruto's only with scars as well as callous. Sakura only had a couple of scars and little callous. "What I wonder is about that Flames of Youth stuff. That Super Fuzzy Brow said something about being the son of the Will of Fire. You think their part of some kind of temple of something?"

Sakura and Sasuke thought about that. They like most people in Konoha were part of the Will of Fire philosophy but had never heard of the 'Flames of Youth.' Their contemplation was interrupted by a familiar voice at the top of the stairs, "I see you ran into Maito Gai and his student Rock Lee." There standing in his usual slouched position was Kakashi ever-present book in hand. "Don't try to figure out how they do that beach scene. It's driven more Jounin to early retirement than most S-Rank Missions. Its just something they can do." Kakashi spoke with a tone of long experience on that subject. "Well anyway I'm glad all three of you showed up. If not I would have barred the others from taking the Exam."

"What!? Why!?" Naruto demanded.

"Taking the Chunin Exam requires a team of three Gennins," Kakashi answered. "So if one of you didn't want to participate then the others would have been out of luck."

"But you said it was our choice," Sakura said.

"I didn't want any of you trying to pressure the others," Kakashi replied. "To become a Chunin is a big step in your live, bigger than even graduating the Academy. Being Chunin means others will rely on you to make command decisions and to think things through, you can't go rushing into things blind." Kakashi gave a significant glance at Naruto who just pouted at the not so subtle accusation. "When you begin remember this bit of advice, 'The most important part of being a ninja is teamwork,' with that you three should do fine. Good Luck."

"Luck is for weaklings," Sasuke said striding into the test room with Naruto and Sakura quickly following him.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and only use it for entertainment purposes.

Sarutobi Sasuke sat in his office contemplating the file before him. It was the file for a young woman looking to enter Konoha's shinobi forces, namely 'Hana.' The incident with the Kazekage's children brought his decision to head. For the past two months he had an Anbu detail following the young woman to try and evaluate her personality. Strength was not an issue because whatever level she was, or at least showed, would eventfully come out in missions. No, what the Sandaime Hokage wanted to know was what kind of person 'Hana' was. Early in Konoha's founding the Shodai had an unwritten rule that Konoha ninja would have a certain level of compassion and caring to other people. Some disagreed with the policy feeling that it would show weakness towards other villages. Sarutobi did not agree, he felt that Konoha retained its strength by those ideals, after all a man fights hardest when he is protecting something he cares about.

The Anbu reports over the last two months showed 'Hana' to be a caring young woman to those she likes and polite if cold to those she does not. In particular were the notes made about how she acted around people when she was with Naruto. To the people that liked Naruto, such as the Ramen Stand and Iruka, she was pleasant polite girl that was quick to smile and easy to talk to. With people who hated him, such as some of the Academy Sensei, she acted like a cold aristocrat; those people were not worth her time and their insults to Naruto were a personal front to her. Ironically this had many of the less in the know civilians treating Naruto better, as they thought Hana was some young noble woman. These actions had the Hokage leaning to allow her to join Konoha as she did show she had the same ideals as he wanted his subordinates to strive for.

On top of all these reports, however was the latest report; the incident involving 'Hana,' Naruto, Kohonamaru and the Kazekage's children. According to all witnesses, including the Anbu and Uchiha Sasuke, 'Hana' acted just as Sarutobi hoped all his shinobi would. She jumped in to assist a friend and a young boy, namely Naruto and Konohamaru. When it was revealed who the Suna Team actually was she conducted herself in a truly professional manner; enough of a threat to keep the others aware but not enough of one to escalate a possibly volatile situation. She also checked to make sure no one was injured a true sign of a medic-nin, something Konoha was always looking for. In short the Sandaime Hokage decided that 'Hana' would join Konoha as soon as the Chunin Exam was complete.

Currently the young woman in question was wondering what to do with her day. For the most part her existence in Konoha was focused around two things, her mission and work. Her mission was up in the air and that had little to do with the Chunin Exam, as her resolve to end Team 7's lives had been wavering for weeks now. For work she had the day off as everyone was at home or at the bars waiting for the results of the first Exam to come in. It turned out a lot of bets were being made about who would pass the first test. Team 7 and the other Konoha Rookies had a low chance of passing. Not that Haku could blame those odds, it was rare for Rookie Gennin to be nominated much less pass their first Chunin Exam. Then again from the gossip she heard from working at the kimono shop this year's Rookie 9 were supposed to be the best Konoha had in years.

But that did not solve her current dilemma, what to do with the day? 'Maybe I'll go see if Ayame is free,' Haku thought. The two young women had become friends rather quickly after the first meeting. The reason was simple, both saw the other cared for Naruto. At the time Haku had started the friendship as a ruse to get closer to Naruto and the rest of Team 7. But as with all her other plans her acting quickly became genuine feelings. The truth is Haku had no friends after being on the run for so long. This was just one more aspect Haku found she had in common with Naruto, very few friends.

Making her way to the Ramen Stand Haku was not surprised to find it nearly empty, in fact only one person was actually there, Umino Iruka. With a smile of true joy Haku quickened her stride to the stand. When she arrived she caught the middle of a conversation about the Chunin Exam. "…should do well," Iruka said. "Kiba and Shino are actually among the best trackers I've taught and as long as Hinata sticks with them they should at least make it to the Final Test."

"Is Hinata that Hyuuga girl that's following Naruto around every so often?" Ichiruka asked.

"Yeah that's her," Iruka nodded. "She's had a crush on Naruto for as long as I can remember, she just seems too shy to approach him."

"Perhaps she would be given some encouragement," Haku spoke up.

"That's funny, I would have thought you would object to having some completion," Ichiruka said with a teasing smile.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Haku replied more than a little startled.

"Well with all the time you spend with him and that little dinner date you two had a couple of weeks ago…" Ichiruka trailed off, his smile never leaving his face.

"We are just friends and that dinner was not a date!" Haku insisted turning red with embarrassment.

"Whatever you say," Ichiruka replied, "I believe you." His tone made it clear that he believed no such thing. Iruka had his head down away from view but his shaking shoulders and soft snorts showed he was trying to hold in his laughter.

"Otto-san (Father)! Stop that!" Ayame scolded. "You're embarrassing her." Ayame swat her father's head, took off her apron and left the kitchen area. "C'mon Hana, let's get away from these two!" Taking Haku's hand and walking away in an indignant huff Ayame left her father to fend for himself for the rest of the day.

At the Chunin Exam Naruto was facing his worst enemy, a written test. The first test of the Chunin Exam turned out to be a knowledge test rather than a practical skills test. Naruto had learned a lot since Wave his ability to take test had not improved one bit. 'Damn it just had to be a written test didn't it!' Naruto yelled inside mind at the universe. 'This is so unfair, I mean how the hell am I supposed to know…' he paused to read sixth question again, '…the calculation necessary to ignite an explosive note twenty meters away while the note is being drenched with a suiton (Water Element) jutsu with a twenty five kilometer per hour wind gust!' After a frustrated pull of his hair Naruto took a deep breath to calm down just as 'Hana' had taught him. After three more breaths Naruto was able think clearly once again and looked around the room to see how everyone else was doing.

Naruto first looked for his teammates, unforetunately he could only find Sasuke. Apparently Sakura was behind him in a higher seat. He did not dare look to make sure because he did not want to be accused of cheating. Back to Sasuke, Naruto noticed that he had little trouble in answering the questions if the constant motion of his hands was any indication, 'Just great I bet that Teme knows every last one of these question!' For a few moments Naruto let his anger at begin shown up by Sasuke get to him. But after another couple of calming breaths Naruto began to look around the room once again. This time he noted several odd actions, like a small white ball hovering just over the shoulder of a foreign Gennin or the fact that the girl to his left, Hinata, had a lot of veins pulsing around her eyes. 'That's weird,' Naruto thought starring at her.

Apparently Naruto was staring at her for too long as Hinata's eyes returned to normal and she looked away from him. Naruto was obviously unaware of the bright red blush forming on the girl's face. After taking a few moments to calm down Hinata took a glance at Naruto's paper and just as she feared it was empty. 'Naruto seems to have figured out we're supposed to cheat,' Hinata thought. She had seen him glancing around the room taking note of several of the more unique methods of spying. She saw his curious gaze and misinterpreted it for wondering what he would do instead of what was going on. She took another glance and found him looking at another Konoha-nin coping off another person. Naruto had a frown on his face that she thought was disapproval of such a blatant method of cheating. 'Naruto must not have a sufficient method of spying to get past the proctors and is not taking the risk. But if he doesn't answer at least one question he won't have anything to fall back on if he gets the final one wrong.' Worried about her inspiration Hinata decided to help Naruto copy her answers. 'I just have to move it a little bit and move my arm. Then I can help Naruto without getting caught and letting down Kiba and Shino.' With just a little bit of motion she moved her paper into Naruto's peripheral vision and bent her elbow just enough for him to see the first two answers of the test.

Naruto did not pick up on such a subtle motion from Hinata. No his concentration was focused on the Konoha-nin a row down that was copying of a Genin from Ame (Rain). He was trying to get quick clues on the guy's technique so he could cheat as well. Unfortunately the Konoha Gennin had just taken one more glance when one of the proctors yelled, "Number 56 fail! You, Number 72, and 33 are out of here."

"Hey you can't prove anything!" the Konoha Gennin argued. The proctor's response was to whip a kunai right between the teen's legs. "AHH!"

"Get out unless you don't want me to miss next time I throw," the proctor said pulling out another kunai. The Gennin quickly left the room followed by his teammates.

Naruto meanwhile had flinched at the yell and caught sight of Hinata's exposed paper. 'Yes, I can get answers from her,' he thought. 'Though I have to be careful unless I get kicked out like that other guy.' With as small movements Naruto positioned his eyes so he could just see Hinata's paper out of the corner of his eye. Thankfully his ability to see out of his peripheral had increased thanks to 'Hana' in the last month, thus he was able to see most of Hinata's first two answers. After slowly and carefully copying what he could Naruto checked his answers. They were mostly complete and felt if he could take one more glance he could get the rest.

Hinata who had seen Naruto writing his incomplete answers decided to help him again by scooting her paper another centimeter closer. This seemed to do the trick as Naruto was able to complete his answers, 'I helped Naruto!' Hinata thought happily even as she saw the obvious tension leave Naruto's shoulders.

Up on the top row Sakura had been watching Naruto's back and also saw him relax. "I wonder why he's so relaxed no?" she muttered. For the first half an hour of the exam she saw Naruto become stressed, angered, and scared after that kunai throw and now he suddenly relaxed. 'Theirs is no way he could have answered any of the questions by himself. I could barely answer most of them. Maybe Hinata helped him.' She knew Hinata like Naruto, why was another question, but she knew Hinata did and figured if anyone would help Naruto it would be Hinata.

Still with Naruto relaxed a lot of Sakura's own anxiety had left. Up until this point she had been worried Naruto would blow and choke like he did on several written test back at the Academy. With the clock winding down and several teams leaving to do losing to many points she was worried Naruto would put everything on the last question. 'All of nothing seems to be Naruto's unwritten motto,' Sakura thought. 'I'm just glad Naruto's learned some patients from Kakashi-sensei and Hana.'

'Still not as cool as Sasuke-kun,' Sakura's inner voice said.

"Alright that's it pens down!" the scarred Jounin Ibbiki said. Several of the Gennin sighed that the first part was finally over and some even relaxed a little. To the back of the room a door opened and a proctor and the Suna Gennin Kankuro entered. "Glad to see you didn't spend too much time playing with your doll." Kankuro paused for a minute looking surprised and saw a bunch of knowing grins. With a nervous look he made his way back to his seat and waited. "Now that everyone who is going be here is back we can know ask the final question." He paused to get everyone's full attention, "But first you need to know some more rules." There were several groans about more rules but Ibbiki ignored them. "The first rule is that this is an all or nothing question. Either you take it or all your points are reduced to zero and you fail."

"That's not fair!" Sakura yelled. "What about the first nine questions!?"

"First life isn't fair!" Ibbiki replied, "Especially a shinobi's! Next those questions served their purpose, to weed out those who can't spy worth a damn. If you can't spy or cheat well on a simple written exam then you don't deserve to be ninja much less a Chunin. Now for the second rule; if you take this question and get it wrong I will revoke your right to ever be Chunin."

"You can't do that!" a Suna-nin yelled. "You can't have that authority over us! Besides there are those who took this exam before and failed."

"By the treaty that the Hidden Villages signed that established the Chunin Exam I have that right," Ibbiki calmly answered. "And you had the bad luck of having me as your examiner. I'm a lot tougher on you then they would be. Now no more stalling are you going to take the final question and risk everything or are you going to take the easy way out and quite."

For several seconds no one did anything, then a Gennin from Iwa stood up, "I..I can't risk it! I quit, I'll take the exam again later. Sorry guys," he apologized to his teammates as they were led out the door.

Soon several other teams were leaving just too scared to risk their careers. In the stands several of the Konoha Rookies were debating if they should quit. At the top Sakura was wondering she should quit for Naruto so he could keep his dream of Hokage alive. A few seats over Shikamaru was calculating which the bigger hassle Ino was or finishing the Exam. Next to Naruto Hinata was shaking with indication about looking cowardly in front of Naruto or doing what was safe. Even Sasuke was contemplating quitting, risking the chance to go up in rank and thus get access to better training. After another minute Ibbiki got impatient and asked, "Well is there anyone else?" Naruto to this as his queue to stand up. The entire room now focused on the blonde boy especially Ibbiki, "You got something to say midget?"

"Yeah, I got something to say," Naruto said lowly. Then he looked Ibikki right in the eye and demanded, "Ask your damn question! I promised the people close to me I would do my best and I don't break my promises. That is my Nindo (Ninja Way). You hear me, I won't quit no matter what!" The shock from the rest of the Gennin was like a ripple in water. Many could not believe Naruto's boldness to such an intimidating man. Still it had one side effect that anyone could see. No one was wavering anymore, all were staying right where they were.

"Alright," Ibikki said. "Then I just have one last thing to say. Congratulation on passing the first test!" Again there was shock followed by confusion and a lot of questioning looks. "Let me explain, there was no final question or rather the decision to stay was the final question."

"Um why?" Kiba asked.

"Because as a Chunin you will be asked to make tough choices, dangerous choices and safe choices," Ibbiki explained. "Like whether to accept a mission with a high danger mission or not. The answer is obvious, of course to take the mission! If you don't have the guts to take such mission then you might as well quit being a shinobi, our lives are always filled with danger." He took off his bandana, revealing several hideous scars, to emphasize his point. "Those cowards who couldn't even risk their promotion much less their lives don't deserve to be Chunin much less any other rank." The crowd was in agreement, they knew the risks in taking the exam, they had been told several times. If the other were not willing to risk everything then why did they sign up for a life threatening exam. Just as well, there was no room for people like that in the Chunin Exam. "Now this part is over, you should all be warned that the next part will be a lot…"

A loud crash interrupted Ibbiki's sentence as human projectile crashed through the window and through up a banner saying, 'Miturashi Anko The Second Stage Examiner.' "You babies better be prepared for now it's my turn!"

"You're early Anko," Ibbiki said dryly.

"Thirty teams?" Anko asked, "You must be losing your touch old man."

"Good crop this year," Ibbiki counted.

"Doesn't matter after I'm done I bet only half if not less remain," Anko said in a tone that left the Gennin with a sense of dread.


	7. Chapter 7

'Panic, a state of sudden fear that dominates or replaces rational thought,' a part of Sakura's mind recited. The part of her that she kept separate from the out side world, her Inner Sakura, told her to move, run, fight; anything really as long as it got her away from the shinobi stalking towards her and Sasuke. Unfortunately for Sakura, Inner Sakura's voice was drowned out by the visions of a kunai being rammed into her forehead over and over again.

Fortunately for Sakura however Sasuke was able to shake off the worse effects of the panic educing Genjutsu (Illusion). He accomplished this by activating his Sharingan just prior to the Genjutsu hitting. He knew the death scene was just a chakra induced hallucination, but that did not stop the more primitive part of his mind from reacting. Unlike Sakura he did not freeze, Sasuke let his fight or flight instinct take over and grabbed Sakura and made a run for it. 'A shinobi's greatest ally is their instincts,' Sasuke's mind quoted Kakashi. 'If your instincts tell you to run and you can do so without risking a teammates life, do so!' Thus Sasuke ran.

After a grueling sprint across the tree tops of the Forest of Death, Sasuke found an alcove that provided a temporary defensible position. Landing in the alcove and depositing Sakura against the tree Sasuke began a calming exercise he learned from Team 7's unofficial assistant instructor, Hana. 'Start with the breathing,' Sasuke thought taking a deep breath, 'Control your breath and pulse, then relax your muscles,' the tension in his shoulders eased ever so slightly, 'And finally slow your charka flow.' In less than a second Sasuke's panic receded, his mind cleared and alertness returned to a trained soldier instead of a frightened animal. "Now for Sakura," Sasuke whispered. Remembering the second lesson to dealing with panic, this one taught by Kakashi. Sasuke had to choose from two methods; talk the other person down or slap them. Sasuke decided on the quicker of the two.

"Sa...Sasuke!?" Sakura half asked half demanded. "What..?"

Her question was cut off by Sasuke placing his hand over her mouth. "Quiet!" Sasuke demanded. "We can't stay. We've have not gone far from that...that, Jounin I guess, as we can. We need to get moving!"

Sakura nodded understanding the reason. This shinobi was at least a Jounin and targeted them specifically, that meant the Chunnin Exam was put on hold for the moment. Still that left one question, "What about Naruto?"

"Oh you shouldn't worry about him," the deep, twisted sounding voice of their attacker said from above them. Sakura and Sasuke's heads jerked up seeing the Shinobi's torso hanging out of the tree. "He's already become food for my pets!"

About a mile away Naruto was having his own moment of panic. Unlike his teammates this was not caused by a ninja of overwhelming ability. It was caused by the fact that he was being eaten alive by largest snake he had ever seen. 'Ok! Ok! Remember what Iruka-sensei said about stuff like this. 'A ninja is never trapped. So never think of yourself in a hopeless situation.' Ok, so I'm in a snake, its alive it has two exits. Don't want to go backwards so I have to go out the mouth. That means I have to make this thing puke.'

Struggling to bring his hands above his head to make the Ryu (dragon) seal Naruto started to channel chakra for one of the most basic medical justu (technique) taught, the Shimukeru Hedo (Vomit Inducing) no Jutsu. All it did was upset a person's stomach but it was standard practice for ingested poison. As Naruto's chakra spread through the snakes body the muscles started to spasm, then the muscles behind Naruto contracted and the ones in front of him relaxed. The next thing Naruto knew he was sailing through the air and crashing into some underbrush.

Standing quickly Naruto jumped up to a near by branch to find out where the snake had gone. If he acted just a second later he probably would have been caught in the snakes coils. "So not giving up huh!?" Naruto called. "Well lets see how you like this!" Naruto reached into his back pouch and pulled out a special kunai. What was special about it was it had three explosive notes attacked to it: one around the handle, and two tied to the ring. With his strongest possible heave Naruto threw the kunai at the snake piercing it right in it's eye. Naruto quickly ducked behind the tree he was standing one and covered his ears. With the strength of the explosion and his proximity to the source covering his ears hardly did anything for the Gennin. The explosion was so loud in fact that Naruto blacked out for a moment and nearly fell out of the tree.

Coming to and shaking his head Naruto surveyed the damage done by his kunai bomb. Several branches were blow apart, there were scorch marks on the tree trunks and the only thing left of the snake was a small bits of the body scatted in every direction. "That was cool!" Naruto said in awe. "Still got to find the others." He was about to head off but a wave of dizziness caused him to pause, "As soon as my ears stop ringing."

Currently Sasuke and Sakura were struggling just to stay alive. They were correct that the ninja they were facing was at least a Jounin and with each passing second it became obvious that he was above even that. For no matter what they threw at him, what jutsu they used, or how well they worked together this ninja kept up with them with little effort. "Kukukuk, you are a special one aren't you Sasuke. Your eyes allow you to see how I'm going to move and you react accordingly. While all users of the Sharingan can do this very few were actually able to do so under such stressful conditions." The shinobi paused to look Sasuke in the eye for just a brief moment, too quickly for Sasuke to use any optical Genjutsu he was just starting to learn. "The fact that you only progressed to the second stage in each eye shows your talent."

With the shinobi's back turned Sakura tried to get the drop on him. She tarted the back the shinobi's legs, one of the more vulnerable parts on the human body. Before Sakura could come within a meter of the shinobi however he twisted his body that was entirely inhumane and sent a palm strike to the girls chest stopping her momentum cold and knocking the air from her lungs. "And you should stay out of matters that don't concern you," he scolded with distance.

Without even looking away from Sakura, his right arm shot out with a pear hand strike to Sasuke's throat stopping the point blank range fire technique he was about to use. "Using your teammate's attack to get in a killing blow," his face twisted into a grotesque smile. "With that mentality you will make an excellent assassin. Maybe enough to kill Itachi."

Sasuke still gasping for breath wheezed out, "Wha...you...abou...Itachi?"

"All in good time," the Shinobi smirked, "But I think I've learned enough about you. Yes, you did very well indeed. Better than I thought, I think you will do well with my gift." The attacker made a ohitsuji (ram) seal and his arm shout out to the Sasuke grabbing his neck. He was about to pull the boy to him when a shout interrupted.

"And I think you talk to much!" Naruto called heaving a windmill shuriken at the shinobi. The shinobi actually looked surprised to see Naruto and for a split second just stood there. That split second allowed Sasuke to grab thumb on the hand holding him and twisting. This cause the shinobi to release Sasuke as he dodged the large throwing weapon and the one that was right behind the first. Having to dodge two unexpected attacked made the shinobi retreat just a little bit. Allowing Naruto and the just recovered Sakura to join Sasuke.

"So the three of you together, hmm," the Shinobi mocked. "Two of you almost made me sweat and if the third one is here that means he beat my pet. I guess I'm going to have to take you more seriously now." The shinobi flashed through four hand seals before saying, "Kuchiyose (Summoning) no jutsu." A large snake, about two and a half time bigger than the one Naruto killed, appeared out of the smoke.

Sakura had devoted nearly all of her efforts to bookwork back at the Academy. She came to regret this decision now that she spent time in the field were that knowledge was practically useless. In this case it sent a spike of fear up her spine as she recognized the summon animal from her history lessons. "Orochimaru," her voice trembled. "You're Orochimaru!"

"Oh you are a clever one," Orochimaru mocked as he pealed the skin off of his face to reveal his true white skin tone underneath. With a stamp of his foot the snake under him lunged forward, mouth open ready to eat the Gennin whole.

"Oh hell no!" Naruto yelled. If there was one thing he never wanted to do again, it was to get eaten a snake. "Kage Bushin (Shadow Clone) no Jutsu!" Ten Kage Bushin appeared and their puffs of smoke distracted the snake just enough for Team 7 to dodge the attack. The clones did not last more than a second however as the snakes mass simply crushed them, ending their existence.

Orochimaru being above the snake was able to see which way the Gennin dodged. The two boys launched to the sides, each in a good flanking position to pelt him with either long range jutsu or weapons. The girl however jumped back and up landing on the same branch but at a higher altitude. This position would have given her a place to counter attack the snake, had he not been on top of it. "You're clearly the weakest link little girl," Orochimaru taunted as he zipped up to the girl. Sakura tried to move but Orochimaru struck with the speed of a pit viper. One blow to the face and she was out of the fight.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled. With the rage at seeing one of his few friends injured Naruto charged. His charge were more motivated by habit than stupidity. After all it is human nature to fall back on ingrained habits and Naruto had a habit of rushing into any situation, despite over two months of Kakashi trying to get him to think before he acts.

Naruto's charge did have one advantage. It shifted Orochimaru's attention to him for a moment. In that moment Sasuke flashed through a set of handseals he since he was six years old. "Katon: Goukakyuu (Fire Element: Grand Fireball) no Jutsu!" A fireball three meters across sped towards Orochimaru, forcing him to dodge once again. "Naruto! Grab Sakura!" Naruto changed his trajectory just slightly in order to miss the fireball and grab the downed teammate.

In Sasuke's haste and Naruto's blind charge both forgot about the snake summon. When the fires started to dissipate from lack of fuel the snake lunged up at Naruto and Sakura. They were lucky that the snake kept its mouth close did not want to risk getting its mouth burnt. Naruto only had a heart beat to put his body between Sakura and the snakes taking the entirety of the hit and into unconsciousness. This sent Naruto and Sakura high into the air and then plummeting back downward right into the snakes waiting mouth.

Just as the snake was about swallow both Sakura and Naruto whole. It would have too, if not for a windmill shuriken piercing the snakes eye causing it to hiss in pain and veer off to the side. The windmill shuriken was quickly followed by two kunai that caught Sakura and Naruto and pinned them to the trees. "I'm always having to save them," Sasuke muttered his Sharingan active once more so he could get the trajectory of his throws right.

"You shouldn't be so easily distracted Sasuke-kun," Orochimaru taunted from just behind Sasuke. The Gennin was only able to avoid the blow to the back of his head because of the his recent speed training. But even then neither his eyes nor his body could react fast enough to the follow up knee to his chin. All Sasuke could do was mitigate the blow by allowing himself to relax and let the momentum of the strike send him flying away.

Sasuke could see the ground was approaching and angled himself so he would land with minimal injury. As soon as he stopped Orochimaru was in his personal space again, "When I saw you use the girl's attack as an opening earlier I thought you had the potential to beat your brother. But seeing you get so easily distracted just a moment ago I may have to reconsider my assessment."

"What the hell would you know!?" Yelled taking a blind swing at the Snake Summoner.

"I know it will take more than talent and the easy lifestyle living in Konoha to defeat a man like him," Orochimaru answered as he neglectfully blocked the punch. "It will take a lot more than anything here to bring out your true strength." Orochimaru grinned again as he leaned forward invading Sasuke's personal space even more. "But I can give you training that will allow you to surpass not only your own limitations but those of your brother as well." Orochimaru could see the anticipation in Sasuke's eyes. He has read Sasuke's psychological profile before coming here, he knew the boy's lust for revenge and power. To prove he had what it take to surpass the man to destroyed his world. And like all master manipulators, Orochimaru knew the best way to recruit someone was to tell them exactly what they want to hear, but with a twist. "As I said before, you are special but men like myself and Itachi are in leagues of our own. I'll give you a gift..."

Orochimaru's proposal was cut off as he jerked his head to a charging Naruto. Around the boy was a red aura and presence that radiated an animal fury. With a quick Kawarimi (replacement) Orochimaru dodged away from the body tackle and gave himself a safe distance to observe the new factor. While the boy's speed and agility showed a dramatic increase they were still no match for his own making a minimal threat. Still it was an unknown ability and unknown abilities were what got shinobi killed.

"Naruto!?" Sasuke flinched He had never seen Naruto move that fast before. Naruto rounded on Sasuke displaying his changed facial features: his red animal like eyes, deeper birth marks, fangs and clawed fingers. The aura and the changed features in all honestly frightened Sasuke more than Orochimaru's genjutsu because there was no genjutsu. The effect made looking at Naruto feel like he was staring into the eyes of an apex predator looking for its next meal.

Sasuke's flinch calmed Naruto down just enough to loose the aura but still keep the animal features. Naruto turned back to Orochimaru who was looking on with a closed off face, not letting anyone know what he was thinking. "Watch for an opening," Naruto said before charging Orochimaru.

Sasuke tried to call Naruto back but he was already three quarters of the distance there and called forth twenty Kage Bushins. If Orochimaru was surprised by the number of Kage Bushins he gave no indications. What he did do was take the Gennin more seriously. Quickly flashing through handseals that Sasuke only vaguely knew Orochimaru said, "Katon: Karyuu Endan (Fire Element Dragon Projectile)!" A focused stream of fire roared out of Orochimaru's mouth and engulfed all the clones in a blaze of death. When the smoke cleared there were no signs of a body causing Orochimaru to narrow his eyes. Taking a quick glance around the area he saw a broken sampling near a scorched tree. This allowed him to know which direction Naruto would come from and thus dodge out of the way of another three Kage Bushin. With a quick flick of his wrist Orochimaru destroyed the Kage Bushins. What he did not expect was to land right next to another three Kage Bushins whom all had a burning explosive note in hand. The explosion blasted the Snake Summoner across the clearing and right into a crude network of ninja wire.

"Got you," Sasuke smirked. He had followed the entire exchange his Sharingan. He saw Naruto veer off to the side and create another set of Kage Bushin just before the fire killed his others and knew Naruto was trying to create an opening. He quickly came up with a plan to trap the traitor and end this in one blow. A part of him was tempted by the offer, but it was only a small part at the moment. "Katon: Ryuuka (Fire Element: Dragon Fire) no Jutsu!"

"Ha! Take that you pale faced freak!" Naruto yelled with a small bunch of Kage Bushin coming out from the tree line. He had created several to serve as cannon fodder to give Sasuke enough time to set up a killing blow. 'I need to ask Kakashi-sensei to teach me some cool jutsu attack jutsu,' Naruto thought. When the smoke cleared instead of seeing a badly burned corpse Sasuke and Naruto saw a large pile of burnt mud in the rough shape of a human.

"My, my you two certainly work well together," Orochimaru's voice called out from all around them. "But that doesn't make you strong, it makes you weak!" Orochimaru burst out of the ground between the two Gennin grabbing Sasuke with one of his hands and Naruto by his tongue. When he yanked Naruto off the ground he saw a brief glimpse of the seal. "So that's what you are. Well this will take care of that!" Using his free hand Orochimaru produced five small purple flames at the end of his figures, "Gogyou Fuuin (Five Element Seal)." He thrust the purple flames into Naruto's abdomen making him yell in pain. "And now for your gift." After dropping Naruto, Orochimaru turned his attention to Sasuke before extending a set of fangs and biting into Sasuke's upper shoulder. When he was finished an ugly black bruise started to take a strange shape. With a negligent toss toward the slowly rising Sakura, Orochimaru stated, "I hope you survive the next twenty four hours. I'd hate to see all this effort go to waste."

'What now?' Sakura wondered as she saw Orochimaru sink into the earth.


End file.
